This invention pertains to flow cytometry, and more particularly pertains to a flow cytometer in which simultaneous optical measurements and electronic particle volume measurement can be made.
The history of flow particle analyzers is divided into two main lines of development, these being optical on the one hand and electronic on the other hand. Further, there have recently been various proposals for combining the optical and electronic techniques. A basic text covering the history of the entire field is FLOW CYTOMETRY AND SORTING: Melamed, Mullaney, Mendelson, et al, John Wiley & Sons; New York; 1979. In order to facilitate understanding the features and advantages of the present invention and by way of a background to it, brief summaries of the development of the optical, electronic and combined techniques are set forth hereafter.